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The Lantus Arboreum
'The Lantus Arboreum ' Created by the Forerunner Rylith, the Lantus were destined to be interwoven with their organic technology. Plant-based symbiotic organisms are everywhere in Lantus life from clothing, to jewellery, to chairs and carpets. The Lantus are a race of universally beautiful people hand crafted by artisans in artificial botanical wombs. From the time they are born their bodies are grafted with symbiotic plant life that allows them to breathe in any atmosphere and protect their skin from harsh radiation and extreme environments. There is usually a delicate white stalk growing out of their shoulders like a bundle of crystals that glows a feint colour associated with their career and rank as well as providing communication and decorative purposes. New grafts are often part of rituals or coming of age events. The Lantus don’t wear “clothing” in the traditional sense, often tending to be “naked” when they are not part of a Starship crew. This is because the Lantus body extrudes a skin-tight armour exoskeleton that is grown from their own flesh like an insect’s carapace, and shed much the same. It is self cleaning, highly resistant to damage, and can protect the wearer in a vacuum and intense temperature or radiation. The only mechanical artifices they use are those that are essential to containing High Technology, like Matter-Stream Lines, Slipstream Drives, Ship Engines, and Weaponry. The “Hard Tech” is then usually coated in a thin layer of living material, almost as if the Lantus built a polished white & black city which was then taken over by the wild alien forest full of bioluminescent foliage. Lantus architecture accommodates this organic matte by design, being used almost like scaffolding for vines and trees to latch onto. The curving arches and cavities that typify Lantus aesthetics are essentially the skeleton for their air purifiers, lights, and micro-gravity locomotion assistance. The moss carpet coating the floors of every ship conduct materials to where they are needed on delicate microvilli, provide a friction surface for walking, and clean up and spilled or broken items that would be dangerous to left free falling in microgravity. Rylith taught her children that “Life is Sacred and Must Spread At All Costs.” The Lantus people have adopted this as a near-religious goal, planting seeds wherever they go. Entire planets have been transformed this way, and there is no higher station in life than “gardener.” Some Lantus have taken this ideology to wild extremes, reproducing wildly and with many diverse partners, transforming the worlds of other races into gardens and retaliating when threatened with harsh reprisals. Sub-Cultures * Brea * Jetseti * Warden * Reject * Raythlish Cultist Language Lanti is the epitome of the phrase, “language is like a babbling brook.” Similar in sound to Finnish or Icelandic, the Lantus language is a gorgeous flow of rhythms and curvature like water through a forest floor; almost like a song. Ironically, beneath the beautiful speech lay a cold and scientific vocabulary that betrays the Lantus philosophy of organic practicality and cultural cynicism. What sounds like a love language is actually a utilitarian engineering and trade tongue. Most of what gives Lanti meaning however are its visual cues. The Lantus people project light from their eyes that many other races are sensitive to, using this emitted photon burst to send information directly to the listener’s mind. All the races can do his, but the Lantus rely on it the most. What people hear is a warm aria when spoken, sometimes a gentle humming and song, when really the message is being sent in a binary code that the listener’s mind interprets as speech. You may download a copy of this font to use in hidden messages or fan art here: LANTI Font.TTF Enemies & Allies The Serin Empire – The Serin are at best Neutral to the Lantus, but may ally with certain sections of their population for trade and mutual defence. Lantus and Serin may even sometimes live together, but it is usually with Pesh Gai'lin and Reyshen. They abhor the Mustani and know nothing of Tzishen or I’jing. The Mexam Confederation – Thanks to their extremely alien culture, the Mexam mostly view the Lantus as curiosities. They can and do however have families together, but the Lantus discourage it. The Torlan Alliance – The Torlan are said to be born from Lantus Gene-Weavers carrying out illegal and forbidden experiments on their offspring, blending Mexam, Serin, and Lantus together. It’s also assumed this was done on purpose rather than as an accident, and the Torlan now are viewed by most Lantus as a mistake they unleashed on the galaxy. They aren’t openly hostile, but keep a safe distance. The Anactora Peacekeepers – The Anactora has been known to burn Lantus gardens deemed “illegal colonies,” as well as hunting down and exterminating Raythlish Cult infestations. This open hostility is ignored out of convenience, mostly because the Lantus can’t afford a war with the Torlan and Mexam. Independent Worlds – Most Independent Worlds willingly trade with Lantus. They are often accompanied by awe struck throngs wherever the Lantus go in Indie worlds - at least, on those that haven't angered a Warden by destroying or defacing their garden sanctuaries, which have no sense of private property, and often spring up in systems that have no formal agreements. Since Indies are much less likely to fight back the Lantus tend to just walk over them. Assets & Population Rylith taught her many first daughters that they were to inherit the galaxy to themselves, and their inner council (The Arboraea) has yet to be dissuaded from this vision. They spread gardens over otherwise lifeless planets, asteroids, and ring systems, bathing them in verdant green jungles – and often go to war to protect it. The Lantus population currently sits at roughly 10 Billion on 2 Forerunner Worlds and countless Frontier planets, moons, asteroids, and even in the atmospheres of gas giants.